Chiropractic Adjustments for Arthritis

Arthritis is an auto-immune joint disease, causing pain and a loss of range of movement. Conventional treatment relies on powerful drugs to ease discomfort, but these have side-effects. Chiropractic care is a drug-free alternative.

There are around 40 million Americans who have arthritis and most of them take strong anti-inflammatory painkillers to reduce pain and swelling and improve mobility. The drugs used – while giving relief from symptoms – may cause ulcers and gastrointestinal disorders. Stomach pain is common in people on conventional treatment protocols for arthritis so doctors usually prescribe antacid, as well. This approach only manages pain rather than preventing it.

Chiropractic care can be utilized to look at the root cause and reduce pain so that fewer drugs are needed.

How Chiropractic Care Can Help

Chiropractic is a manual therapy in which the spinal joints are adjusted if misaligned to strengthen the function of the nervous system. When the nervous system is working to optimal capacity, the immune system also functions better. A simple neurological exam is performed before and after treatment to see if there has been an improvement.

Having regular chiropractic adjustments is beneficial to people with arthritis. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality found that chiropractic was as effective as painkillers for low back pain, knee osteoarthritis and neck pain. It may also help people with hip arthritis. With hip and spinal manipulation and gentle stretching, discomfort can be reduced, the range of motion increased and balance improved. This is particularly important for older adults as falls are a major cause of injury and hospital admission. Two-thirds of injury-related deaths in adults aged over 65 are due to falls. As chiropractic care improves suppleness, it can help keep seniors healthy, happy and out of the hospital.

Holistic Approaches in Chiropractic Care

A chiropractor in Chandler, Arizona will also use rehabilitation techniques, massage therapy and dietary advice for a truly holistic approach that will decrease inflammation and auto-immune reactions in the body to lessen arthritis from the core instead of covering symptoms.